An defence official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the possible threats posed by Chinese cars, while personnel have been advised to refrain from discussing classified information in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for Defence Personnel
During a recently aired appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on reports that MoD staff have been told not to discuss secret material while riding in China-made cars.
The minister said that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but stressed that safety is a issue in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a classified level in any kind of vehicle, due to the growing threats of surveillance that are present in every single vehicle, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Security Background
This revelation follows claims from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could enable China to disable buses and bring chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
This wider defence environment underscores the significance of robust measures and vigilance in every areas of official activities, from vehicle use to discussions habits.
